We have relatives who live on Mercer Island, WA. We'd sent them one of Harry and David's "towers" as their Christmas gift. We got a call from them yesterday, saying that the gift was really helping out the food situation. They'd had no power for several days and the wind was still howling.

600,000 still in the dark in the NorthwestCold weather makes life tough for those left powerless after deadly storm

Dec 16, 2006

SEATTLE - Residents of the Pacific Northwest struggled to stay warm Saturday after the worst windstorm in more than a decade knocked out power to more than 1.5 million homes and businesses and killed at least six people.

More than 600,000 customers in Washington and Oregon still had no power Saturday, and utilities said some might have to wait into next week for their lights to go back on.

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire declared a state of emergency, and with temperatures expected to drop over the weekend, officials warned people not to use outdoor grills, propane heaters or other carbon monoxide-producing equipment indoors.

Firefighters in Kent found 33 people from four families suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning Friday night, fire Capt. Kyle Ohashi said. They had taken their barbecues inside to cook or heat their apartments as temperatures dipped into the 30s.